Leather substitute and method of making the same



Patented Feb. 23, 1937 UNITED STATES LEATHER SUBSTITUTE AND METHOD OFMAKING THE SAME Frank Harris, Sharon, Mass., assignor to Plymouth RubberCompany, Inc., Canton, Mass.,- a corporation of Massachusetts NoDrawing. Application May 28, 1934, Serial No. 727,981

I 8 Claims. This invention relates to. materials closely simulatingleather in appearance and capable of being used in place of leather forsome purposes. Material of this general nature has heretofore been madeby napping a fabric and then treating the napped face with an adhesivein the nature of a rubber containing liquid so applied thereto as tosaturate the nap, and to so treat the material, as by rolling whileunder tension, to. produce a leather-simulating surface. The nappingoperation, however, which picks the fibers from the individual strandsof fabric acts to materially weaken the fabric and for some uses, as forlinings for shoes, which are subjected to severe stresses in the pullingover and lasting operation, such weakening is a serious matter.

The present invention has for an object, therefore, to providematerialpossessing all of the desirable characteristics of the product made fromthe napped fabric, but without the weakness produced by the nappingoperation, and which will also have certain other advantages over priorconstructions, such as greater flexibility and registance "to abrasionand being less pipey when In accordance with the present invention,therefore, a woven cloth is taken as the foundation material and to thiscloth, with its fibers intact, is applied a coating of suitable adhesivecement such as, preferably, a rubber cement, although other types ofcement, such as a nitrocellulose cement or combinations of suitablematerials, may be employed. One or both surfaces of the cloth may be socoated. Next flock is applied to the adhesively coated surface of thecloth. This may be shaken on and beaten in in accordance with the usualmethod :of putting on flock, or it may be blown on with an air gun undersufficient air pressure to embed the fibers of the flock well into theadhesive. Such flock fibers are usually shorter than the loosened fibersof a napped fabric. Preferably they are cotton. The cement or adhesiveis preferably then allowed to harden. Next the material is placed undertension to loosen the fibers and the flocked surface or surfaces areimpregnated when under tension with a suitaLle surfacing bindingmaterial, such, for example, as a rubber-containing solution. For boththe initial coating and this saturant, a rubber cement with a volatilesolvent, or latex, either natural or artificial, is quite suitable andpreferably also, Where rubber is used, it may contain a suitablevulcanizing agent, together with accelerators, plasticizers, or otherusual rubber-modifying or treating constituents, depending on thecharacteristics desired in the completed product. The saturatingadhesive is preferably pressed into the flocked surface as by passingthe material between pressure rollers. The saturating material is thenset, as by passing'it through a drying chamber, and the sheet materialis then subje'cted to further tension, and passed between pressurerollers to apply facial pressure, and allowed or caused to vulcanize orcompletely set, or the setting or vulcanization may be effected beforethe final treatment between the pressure rolls. If desired, the materialso formed may be further treated with surfacing agents such aspyroxylin, boiled oils, or the like, which .will give the desiredsurface finish tothe final product or will facilitate finishingoperations such as embossing or the like, or the material may beotherwise surfaced as may be desired.

Material so formed is much stronger than that formed with a nappedfoundation fabric, so that lighter cloth may be used for equal strength.It also has a more closely bonded surfacing which is not so easilyremoved by abrasion as is the sheet material made from the nappedfabric, as heretofore described. Likewise it has more body, due to thegreater mass of fibers in the flocked surface than in the nappedsurface. When bent it has a finer surface wrinkling or piping, moreclosely simulating in this respect the piping or wrinkling of high gradeleather than is the case of the material having a napped fabricfoundation. It likewise is more flexible than this prior material and iscapable of more stretching without damage.

From the foregoing description of the product and a method by which itmay be made, it should be evident to those skilled in the art thatvarious changes and modifications may be made without departing from thespirit orscope of this invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of making a leather substitute, which comprises adhesivelyapplying flock to the surface of a woven cloth fabric, applying abinding saturant to said flocked surface, and subjecting said materialto facial pressure while under tension.

2. The method of making a leather substitute, which comprises applyingan adhesive to the surface of a woven cloth fabric, applying flock tosaid adhesive and permitting the adhesive to harden, and then applying abinding saturant to said flocked surface while the material is undertension, and applying pressure thereto also while the material is undertension.

3. The method of making a leather substitute, which comprises applyingan adhesive to the surface of a woven cloth fabric, applying flock tosaid adhesive and permitting the adhesive to harden, and then applying arubber-containing binding agent to said flocked surface while thematerial is under tension, and applying pressure thereto while thematerial is under tension.

4. The method of making a leather substitute, which comprises applyingan adhesive to the surface of a'woven fabric, applying flock to saidadhesive and permitting the adhesive to harden and then applying arubber-containing binding saturant to said flocked surface while thematerial is under tension, subjecting the material to pressure, dryingand setting the saturant, again pressing under tension, andsurface-coating the material.

5. The method of making a leather substitute, which comprises applyingan adhesive to the surface of a woven .cloth fabric, applying flock tosaid adhesive and permitting the adhesive to harden, and then applying abinding saturant to said flocked surface while the material is undertension, subjecting thematerial to pressure, drytension. I

6. The method of making a leather substitute, which comprises applyingan adhesive to the surface of a woven cloth fabric, applying flock tosaid adhesive and permitting the adhesive to harden, and then applying abinding saturant to said flocked surface while the material is undertension, subjecting the material to pressure, drying the saturant, againpressing under tension and surface-coating the material.

'7. A leather substitute, which comprises a layer of woven cloth coatedwith rubber into which is embedded flock, and surfaced with rubbersaturating said flock and in compressed condition produced by theprocess of claim 8.

8. The method which comprises applying an adhesive to the surface of awoven textile fabric, applying flock thereto and allowing the adhesiveto harden to bond the flock to the fabric, then while the material isunder tension saturating the flocked surface with a rubber-containingsolution, setting and finishing the surface to simulate leather.

FRANK HARRIS.

